FIFA President Gianni Infantino has outlined his ambitious goal to attend two World Cup matches each day throughout the remainder of the tournament, despite the challenging travel distances involved.
Thanks to a private jet provided by Qatar Airways as part of its sponsorship arrangement with FIFA, Infantino is set to traverse the vast landscapes of the United States, Canada, and Mexico for his match schedule.
After witnessing the tournament’s opening match in Mexico City last Thursday, Infantino swiftly flew to Guadalajara for South Korea’s triumph over Czechia. The following day, he was in Los Angeles to experience the USA’s 4-1 victory against Paraguay, then continued to San Francisco and Vancouver for matches featuring Qatar against Switzerland and Australia against Turkey, respectively.
On Sunday, however, Infantino did not attend any games as he was in Miami hosting a FIFA summit with representatives from all 211 member associations. That evening, he returned to Los Angeles to catch Iran’s debut match against New Zealand.
FIFA insiders have confirmed that Infantino will strive to watch two games daily whenever feasible, even with the demanding travel itinerary. The 56-year-old managed to attend all 64 matches at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where the maximum distance between stadiums was 46 miles.
Traveling Distances and Environmental Impact
The current World Cup spans four time zones and three nations, with stadiums located as far as 2,800 miles apart. Infantino’s travel will exceed that of anyone else involved in the tournament.
Among the participating teams, Bosnia and Herzegovina faces the most strenuous journey during the group stage, accumulating a travel distance of 3,144 miles from Toronto to Los Angeles and Seattle, in addition to returning to their training camp in Salt Lake City between matches.
Due to these extensive distances, the New Weather Institute has labeled this World Cup as “the most polluting event ever” projecting an estimated carbon dioxide equivalent emission of around 9 million tons. Air travel alone accounts for approximately 7.7 million tons of this total, which is over four times the average emissions from World Cups held between 2010 and 2022.
